Olefin metathesis has gained a prominent place in the chemist's arsenal as a powerful tool for carbon-carbon bond formation due to the development of highly active and versatile catalysts (Handbook of Metathesis; Grubbs, R. H., Ed.; Wiley-VCH). The efficiency and usefulness of these catalysts depend on various factors among which the nature of the ligands present in the catalyst.
Owing to their electronic properties, N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHC) have contributed to the increased stability and reactivity of catalysts, particularly in ruthenium-based olefin metathesis (Scholl et al., Tetrahedron Letters 1999, 40, 2247; Scholl et al., Organic Letters 1999, 1, 953-956; Huang et al., J. Amer. Chem. Soc., 1999, 121, 2674-2678).
Solid-support reagents have been used in chemical syntheses and present many advantages among which the ease of removal/purification from reactions, the safer handling of dangerous or toxic chemicals and the recycling of recovered reagents. For instance, solid-supported catalysts provide an effective strategy to eliminate metal contamination of the metathesis products. However, the preparation of solid-supported catalysts for metathesis can be challenging and result in a catalyst with lower reactivity.
Thus, there is a need for solid-supported catalysts with good reactivity for olefin metathesis and an efficient method for their preparation.